1949–1990 Lansing Assembly (engine block and heads) Saginaw Metal Casting Operations
Layout
Configuration
90° V8
Cylinder block material
Cast iron
Cylinder head material
Cast iron
Valvetrain
OHV 2 valves per cyl.
Combustion
Fuel system
Carburetor Multi-port fuel injection
Fuel type
Gasoline
Oil system
Wet sump
Cooling system
Water-cooled
Chronology
Predecessor
Oldsmobile Straight-8 engine
The Oldsmobile V8, also referred to as the Rocket, is a series of engines that was produced by Oldsmobile from 1949 until 1990. The Rocket, along with the 1949 Cadillac V8, were the first post-war OHV crossflow cylinder head V8 engines produced by General Motors. Like all other GM divisions, Olds continued building its own V8 engine family for decades, adopting the corporate Chevrolet 350 small-block and Cadillac Northstar engine only in the 1990s. All Oldsmobile V8s were assembled at plants in Lansing, Michigan while the engine block and cylinder heads were cast at Saginaw Metal Casting Operations.
All Oldsmobile V8s use a 90° bank angle, and most share a common stroke dimension: 3.4375 in (87.31 mm) for early Rockets, 3.6875 in (93.66 mm) for later Generation 1 engines, and 3.385 in (86.0 mm) for Generation 2 starting in 1964. The 260 cu in (4.3 L), 307 cu in (5.0 L), 330 cu in (5.4 L), 350 cu in (5.7 L) and 403 cu in (6.6 L) engines are commonly called small-blocks.[1] 400 cu in (6.6 L), 425 cu in (7.0 L), and 455 cu in (7.5 L)[1] V8s have a higher deck height (10.625 in (27.0 cm) versus 9.33 in (23.7 cm)) to accommodate a 4.25 in (108 mm) stroke crank to increase displacement. These taller-deck models are commonly called "big-blocks", and are 1 in (2.5 cm) taller and 1.5 in (3.8 cm) wider than their "small-block" counterparts.[1]
The Rocket V8 was the subject of many first and lasts in the automotive industry. It was the first mass-produced OHV V8, in 1949.
The factory painted "small-blocks" gold or blue (flat black on the late model 307 cu in (5.0 L)),[1] while "big-blocks" could be red, green, blue, or bronze.[1]
As is the case with all pre-1972 American passenger car engines, published horsepower and torque figures for those years were SAE "Gross," as opposed to 1972 and later SAE Net ratings (which are indicative of what actual production engines produce in their "as installed" state - with all engine accessories, full air cleaner assembly, and complete production exhaust system in place).
^ abcdeHot Rod, 3/86, p.54.
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